As you (should) know by now, Halo 3 is coming out very shortly on September 25 and is going to be the biggest opening day of… well anything. And while you are waiting for Halo 3 to be officially released here is something that will keep you occupied.

The Paper Master Chief!

Thats right, your vary own Master Chief made out of paper. It does take some assembly but it looks really cool. Just download a pdf from the site. Print it out. Cut it out. Then follow the instructions. Enjoy!

It’s not that I’m fascinated with the lives of celebrities, but I found the following clip amusing. From IMDB:

Thrifty Sarah Michelle Gellar has quietly become the queen of the green celebrities by recycling shopping bags and cycling to work. But the former Buffy The Vampire Slayer star admits it has more to do with saving cash that being environmentally conscious. She tells Self magazine, “I take my reusable bag to Whole Foods so I get a discount. I go to Bloomingdale’s on double rewards day. And I always print my dry cleaning coupons before I go. My dry cleaner laughs. He’s like, ‘You don’t have to keep printing them out!’” But it’s her bright pink bicycle which earns her frowns from friends and neighbors now she lives in New York. She adds, “Not only is it bright pink with the bell and streamers and the whole thing, but it has Hello Kitty tires. Every time I leave my apartment, my doorman just shakes his head.”

I applaud her honesty, and I also find it funny. I have nothing against being smart and thrifty. The Hello Kitty bicycle, though, is completely unforgivable.

With NBC having already pulled their shows out of the iTunes store, they are now planning to provide downloads of their popular shows, free-of-charge on their website. This is all well and good, but as with so many good things, there is a catch.

The catch? Shows will be downloaded with commercials in a proprietary player that will disallow transfer of the show between computers and will delete the file after seven days. If all goes well, NBC plans to unveil a service that will allow customers to buy episodes individually with the ability to transfer files between computers with a system that mirrors iTunes.

Make what you will out of that news. While I don’t agree with NBC’s decision to pull their programs out of iTunes, I have no problem with NBC wanting to work on their own terms. What I do have a problem with is that Jeff Gaspin, the president of the NBC Universal Television Group, blames iTunes for problems with episode piracy:

“But, Mr. Gaspin said, ‘piracy was and is our No. 1 priority.’ He said that the music industry had been devastated by the free exchange of music, much of it facilitated by iTunes.”

If you think that iTunes is the problem with piracy, you’re going to have much more to worry about than how much you’re going to charge for your shows. Like, how are you going to stop the scores of computer nerds who will likely find a way to hack the proprietary software. And you know they will. Then, how will you keep the shows from being distributed through other means, like BitTorrent?

No, NBC, you left iTunes for the money. Just admit the reason. You know very well that the iTunes store is one of the safer ways to protect your property. If you’re trying to protecting your property on the basis that iTunes is facilitating piracy, you will not get very far in your own efforts.

I blow my nose at you, so-called NBC. I fart in your general direction. Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberry!

In the midst of my morning “task” of wasting time to browse through websites, I was reading the blog of my friend Joey Connelly, who produces the Geeks on Parade podcast. By the way, GOP (not the political party) is a good “geek” podcast that I recommend you take some time to try. Yes, this is a blatant advertisement. No, I make no apologies.

Anyway, Joey’s latest blog post brought to my attention the relaunch of the Ebert & Roeper website. And I must say, I am almost impressed at the change. On the new website, you can search for over 20 years of reviews from Roger Ebert, Richard Roeper, and even Gene Siskel (whom I have preferred the most out of the three).

Why am I not quite impressed? After being forced to watch an advertisement prior to a show clip, the clip will not load more than about ten seconds, if I get even that far. Let’s hope that this problem is fixed soon, because I am getting tired of watching the same car commercial five times only to get no substantial video in the end.

If this problem ever fixes itself, though, go visit the website. I’d give it at least one thumb up, but that would be too clichéd. So, I give it three dried out banana chips out of five.

Coming up for the fourth quarter of this year, Viacom plans to release a chain of new websites, one which will be found at TheDailyShow.com. That’s right, The Daily Show on Comedy Central will be getting its very own website to feature video archives of the show and an option to view the latest episode of the show an hour or two after it is first broadcast. As an (almost) certified Daily Show fan, I couldn’t be more thrilled.

Now, they just need to give The Colbert Report its own new website with the same treatment, and I’ll be in an artificial computer-generated not-quite-but-almost paradise.

The World Series of Video Games has officially announced that it is shutting down. Despite strong support in the gaming community, the reason for the shut down is stated on their web site by saying, “…the continuing challenges of securing adequate revenues to sustain the production of the WSVG’s large scale events and television programming, in a very crowded field of competitive gaming leagues, has prompted us to re-evaluate our direction as an organization.”

It is no surprise to me that this happened. To start, it is still a new concept that only a small portion of the population even acknowledge as a, for lack of better word, sport. Unlike say… football with millions of followers.

One big problem that the gaming leagues are having is that there are too many leagues for its size. In my opinion, the community might do better if they follow the structure of the EA Sports Madden Challenge. In Madden, a single game is promoted for a national championship, unlike in the gaming leagues where multiple games are played. That way it is more modeled after physical sports where there are separate organizations for each sport.

With the success of the first movie, as well as a teaser clip during the ending credits of the movie and an additional teaser attached to the opening of the next season of the show, there has been some question as to whether or not a Simpsons Movie sequel has been in the works. Well, those questions may have now been foiled.

In the New York Post, Al Jean revealed that there are no plans for a sequel. Quote:

“We would only do a sequel if we believed it was a movie that had to be made, just like we did with the first one. We wouldn’t want to do it just because the first one was successful, or because we wanted to make money off of a movie. We’d only do it if we had a script that we thought was great [and] there’s no script at this point.”

I think this is actually good news. It’s good to have a reminder once in a while that there actually are people in the industry who are concerned about quality material and not just about money. Thank you, Al. I applaud you and your team… in a weird, online, non-visual sort of way.

So, Director Sir Ridley Scott has come out and voiced his distaste of internet media. Apparently, the internet is killing the cinema, Hollywood, babies, and small squirrels. It’s time to rise up again this evil monster. Down with the system!

Okay, perhaps Sir Scott is not that incensed about the internet, but he is not too happy about the ability to download videos on the internet and watch them on your computer. Obviously, the director of Alien, Blade Runner, and Gladiator has a point. Wouldn’t you much rather waste your life savings to see a mediocre movie that you could have easily endured through the comfort of your own home?

I don’t think so. Sir Scott, let me tell you what is really “killing” cinema.

1. Ticket prices that cost nearly the same amount as a DVD of the same movie. Why pay $10 for a movie, plus $5 for a molecule of popcorn and two peanuts, when I can sit at home, eat everything in the refrigerator, and watch the same movie five times with commentaries from the director, writer, actor, gaffer, and studio secretary?
2. DVDs that are released almost immediately after the movie hits theaters. Whatever happened to the year-long wait to actually see a movie at home? Now, you find yourself strolling through Target, when suddenly: BANG! “Woah, that movie isn’t even out in theaters yet!”
3. Annoying theater people who sit in the theater and provide commentary on their lives while the movie is playing. I really don’t care whose boyfriend is going out with whoever else’s hamster. Shut up and watch the friggin’ movie!
4. Movies that suck!

Let’s not forget that Hollywood still makes an obscene amount of money in box office sales. It’s not like movie theaters are going to disappear anytime soon.

So, nice try, Sir Scott. I loved Alien, by the way. I’ll give you credit for that.

If you’re wondering why we haven’t yet posted LTU Episode #004, there is no need to worry. There has been a slight delay on the release of the next podcast, thanks to some new scheduling issues and changes here at the LTU headquarters. Not the least of these changes is the addition of the LTU blog, where you can keep an eye on the various ramblings of our cast and crew.

Anyway, we did just start writing and planning the next show today, and it promises to be quite unique. Part of our plan for this upcoming episode is to spoof a very popular television show. I’d reveal the name of the show and every minuscule detail of the next episode right now, but I’m about to be chased by hobos with rocket launchers.

YAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH!